An increasing number of water-themed toy figures have appeared in the marketplace. These figures range from mermaid dolls to underwater action figures. Children and figure collectors gain an emotional attachment to these figures. Doll stands provide the child and figure collector with a means to display and pose the toy figure.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,261,848 to Kaplan et al (“Kaplan”) discloses a toy with liquid-filled shell. The toy includes a base, a character figure on the base, and a dome-shaped housing on the base over the character figure. Inner and outer transparent shell portions cooperate to define an enclosed cavity therebetween, and a transparent liquid with sparkling particles suspended therein is received within the cavity. While the Kaplan housing creates an appearance that the figure is received in the liquid, it requires the extra effort of lifting the entire dome-shaped housing to place the toy inside or take the toy out of the housing. It also requires a large amount of the liquid in the toy and near the figure.
Kaplan also discloses a second embodiment, a toy including an opaque housing having a window therein. The window includes transparent inner and outer shell portions, which cooperate to define a cavity therein. A transparent liquid is received in the cavity. While this toy creates the appearance that a figure inside the housing compartment is received in the liquid, the housing configuration and small window do not display any figure presentably.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,193,578 B1 to Weber (“Weber”) discloses a bubbling brain novelty. The novelty includes a transparent vessel containing a fluid and a life-like full scale human brain inserted into the fluid. The vessel is open on its top and sealed on its bottom, and is mounted on a base portion of the device. Air bubbles are produced from an air pump, and the vessel is lit from underneath by a lamp. While this item is certainly a novelty, the feature on display, namely the brain, is actually submersed and not suitable for features that are intended to stay relatively dry.